One of the anonymous accusers in the sex abuse case against R. Kelly has spoken publicly for the first time.
“I’m not ashamed of my past anymore,” Lanita Carter told CBS News. “I’m not ashamed of what naysayers say.”
Carter, who was once Kelly’s hairdresser, claims the R&B star tried to force her into oral sex in 2003. When she resisted, he allegedly masturbated and spat in her face.
Kelly has consistently denied all the charges against him.
Carter, who was 24 at the time of the alleged attack, said she had decided to speak out after watching Kelly’s explosive TV interview with Gayle King, in which he tearfully claimed his accusers were “trying to kill” him.
“I felt like it should be a crime… that he be able to get on television and lie,” Carter said.
“It’s actually the reason I’m here.”
With tears rolling down her face, the 40-year-old described how she had thought of Kelly as “a brother” and defended him against earlier allegations of abuse.
“I would tell people, ‘pray for him’. He is nothing like they say,” she told CBS News correspondent Jericka Duncan.
She went on to recount her alleged assault in graphic detail, and described the lasting impact it has had on her life.
“I’ve been carrying this since 2003,” she said. “I have had to sit on a public bus and watch public conversation: ‘Did you hear about what they did with R. Kelly? They need to leave that man alone.’
“And I can’t stand up for myself.”
